Doing the Right Thing

In case you missed the Financial Post on June 15th, there was a full-page article on FP3 entitled “Doing the Right Thing” that talked about Molson’s community investment strategy. In it, our strategy, and the process it took to develop it, is discussed at length.

“Traditionally, you have someone in charge of philanthropy and they make decisions about donating money,” explained Scott Ewart, Chief Legal and Public Affairs Officer, Molson Canada. “We wanted our customers and employees to feel that we were doing the right thing and surprisingly, the results that came back were uniquely aligned.”

Other companies mentioned in the article include Sears Canada, Becel (Ride for Heart Campaign) and Canadian Tire – all companies that have realized the branding power gained by engaging in meaningful CSR or charitable giving programs.

Molson’s is particularly robust, as stated in the article, because it has added an in-house volunteer program and a targeted donation strategy – aspects that make the program more three-dimensional (and in our minds, more engaging and effective).

“You can’t link sales and profit to this activity,” explains Ewart. However, increasingly, market regulators and shareholders expect this kind of activity.

The results of our particular shift continue to unfold – yet so far, polling from 2006 revealed that 78 per cent of Molson employees said they were “extremely satisfied” with Molson as a place of work versus 62 per cent from the year before. This change, and whether or not it is attributable to our new investment strategy, remains to be seen. That there is a significant correlation, however, is more than likely.